. hello everyone. you're in the cnn news rom. i'm don lemon. a lot happening right now. we lost a brilliant actress today known to millions as edith bunker. the tornadoes, they keep coming. storms rip through oklahoma and they're not done yet. and for a second straight day, demonstrators in turkey battle with riot police. are we closer to figuring out one of the greatest -- we may have new evidence in the amelia earhart disappearance. all straight ahead on cnn. >> if you watched tv in the 1970s, you knew about all in the family. another one of the family members has died.

>> songs that made the hit parade ♪ guys like us we had it made ♪ ♪ those were the days and you knew -- >> for millions waited for in now familiar friday night theme song. jean stapleton who played the ditzy wife, edith to the main character archie bunker has died. she died of natural causes at her home in new york city. she was 90. didn't know. we can't forget ee did. but it's easy to forget that she was an accomplished film and stage actress long before that hit sitcom. in an interview with our own larry king, she reveals something about her life after "all in the family." >> when you walk by the screen and all in the family is on, do you watch? >> no. i've of course seen them all and watched them carefully after we did them. i linger for a minute or two and

i think, my, that's very good. >> you're right it was. >> i don't watch it because i don't want it ever to creep into anything else i'm doing. >> you had heard that. >> she played so many roles. just reading from her resume here. larry king, you're there, right? >> i sure am, don. >> larry, she was -- i mean, she was an accomplished stage actress. she played rhinoceros and played -- bells are ringing, funny girl. dam yankees. i just tweeted out and i said no one could have played edith bunker like jean stapleton. because she was so good. we'll remember her as that character. >> she owned that role. whenever they say jean stapleton, they'll say edith bunker. great acting family. her sister maureen who died in 2006, was a great actress. the last time jean was on with us was the night carroll

o'connor died. that was a very, very sad night for her and for america as well. the two of them were bound together like -- who could forget the honeymooners. a lot of people thought all in the family was sort of a spinoff from the ancient jackie gleason show. also an interesting aspect, that was originally a british show called till death do us part. it was brought over to the united states. it was not a hit immediately. in fact, they were thinking of dropping it. the summer reruns, they ran it in the summer, it clicked in the summer and pushed it to a new night and the rest, as they say, is history. >> larry, a lot of people say that about maureen being her sister. i don't think maureen was actually her sister. i think that's something that sort of come about over the years and people assumed that. but, you know, to get back to her. she won three emmys for that role. you know, to win three emmys for a role that you put -- for one role, that's a heck of a lot.

>> you say maureen was not her sister? i think everyone assumed she was. >> everyone assumes that. i'm hearing from producers that it was not. >> i don't think i knew that. >> let's move on. to win three emmys for one role, that's quite an accomplishment. i'm not sure who has done that over the course of a television career for one role. >> i would bet not many. as you can see right there, that face, the couple -- first of all, that opening to every show, when she screamed that line. oh, -- we had it made. it's one. great sitcoms of all-time. ranks among i would say the five best shows ever on television. it changed television, too. because it took risks. it took a lot of risks with regard to the racial attitudes, the way he treated people. it made fun of that, the way --

yet, he had a tenderness. carroll o'connor was brilliant, the way he could play that. you had a hate/love relationship with him. it was an amazing show. >> yeah. remember larry, good night gracie. gracie allen, iconic actress and role. in that vein, that's what jean stapleton will be remembered as. that's the kind much iconic role that she'll be remembered for. >> also, the kind of i don't want to say dumb wife. gracie always played a dumb wife. edith played her as -- she was a wacky archie dominated her. she had a great tenderness in that role, you know. she had enormous feelings she brought to that role. you really -- you loved edith. you embraced her. she was everybody's aunt, i think. that's the way it looked. there was no one like her. >> yeah. i was surprised, larry, that she

said that she didn't get residuals. i don't think carroll o'connor, rob reiner, sally struthers. i don't know if they got residuals and it's still playing to this day. when you asked her about that or someone did, she said she had no regrets. >> when she took it, it was a job. she was a working actress, stage and screen and television. she did it all. she said this was just a job to me. i was just happy to get work. boy, did she get a lot of work. >> hey, larry, can we talk about -- i remember as a kid watching this and people would say, i hate that archie bunker. he's such a racist, he's such a pig, an anti-semite. that was a character he was playing. edith bunker, the dumb wife. she had breast cancer on the show. she was raped, she was kidnapped. this show did things and accomplished things that many shows, even to this day, have not done. i mean, it started that whole

trend of talking about social issues on television. >> norman lear was a pioneer. norman is still around. i just saw him a couple weeks ago. he brought that show over and made it what it was. you got to give him a lot of credit. carroll o'connor off the air was a supporter of major liberal causes, battler for civil rights. very outspoken. he played totally against character in that role. >> uh-huh. so we remember, it started with all in the family, larry, then from there, the spinoff was maud. and then from maude, the spinoff was the jeffersons and then there was also a spinoff of good times. she was a maid -- a good times spinoff. it all came, huge television shows, successes all came from "all in the family." >> it sure did. you know, when you write the history of television, as people

want to do, "all in the family" is going to be in the first paragraph. >> larry thanks for that stroll down memory lane and helping us to remember jean stapleton. i said she's a tv legend. i'm sure you'll agree, right? >> best way to put it. tv legend, brilliant actress who captured a role, dominated the role and made it her own. you looked at that face and that's edith bunker. when an actress can do that, as they say in the trade, you got it made. >> one tv legend remembering another. larry king remembers jean stapleton. thank you so much, larry. go and enjoy your day. we appreciate you joining us on cnn. we miss you. >> thank you. miss you too. >> all righty. let's move on now. we want to talk about what's going on in the midwest. still a threat of severe weather. people in oklahoma this hour are

coming to grips with the latest round of twisters that erupted 24 hours ago and spread. a new round of destruction across four states. >> the video terrifying. painfully familiar. storm chasers capture this scene near union city as a tornado crossed next to them destroying a barn. at least nine people were killed in the storms. more than 100 were injured. >> horizontal. i-40. >> that was the scene near el reno about 25 miles west of oklahoma city. power knocked out to thousands. almost a foot of rain dumped in some areas. all 17 tornadoes, 17 tornadoes reported across the midwest yesterday. people in illinois, arkansas, missouri, also saw storm damage ranging from downed trees and power lines to major flooding.

so we showed you the video of that twister near union city, oklahoma. a community west of oklahoma city. it took one of the hardest hits in yesterday's storms. ed lamb en der a is there. look at that pile of rubble. it's heartbreaking. >> don, what's stunning about that pile, we spoke with the owner of that home. he was in a tornado in piedmont, oklahoma, about 20 miles northeast of where we are two years ago. his home was partially destroyed. he moved here because he didn't want to rebuild in that town. this is where he came. again, he's dealing with the aftermath of tornado destruction. now he's left to clean up the pieces. that is the destruction that he's dealing with, going through. the one thing he told us he was trying to find was a picture of his son in his cowboy boots i believe it was from when he was a young boy. that was one of the things that he's hoping to find in that pile of rubble. he's not very hopeful that he'll be able to do that.

that kind of captures what people are struggling to do. this tornado, as it came through union city, don, took a meandering turn. this is a lot of wide open space out here. unfortunately, this little pocket of home, like five or six homes in this pocket where we are this afternoon. it took a direct hit from this tornado. so a devastating scene here again. what we hear over and over from people here, don, this afternoon, as we come here on the tail end of several weeks of intense wicked storms that have blown across oklahoma and many people will tell you that -- people who live in the state for decades will tell that you this is a tornado season they will never forget. absolutely amazed about how many tornado warnings and how many runs for cover they've had to make. many people exhausted by it all already. >> yeah. you know it was a friday night. working all week and you get home and watch this. i just sat there on the couch and watched for hours. just imagining what these people are dealing with. because even people who aren't

losing their homes or getting hurtd, the constant wave of these storms is really taking a toll on them. >> reporter: you know, i think it's nerve racking. the gentleman who lives in this house, he was at work in downtown oklahoma city, about 20 miles away. he was watching it unfold on live television. the local stations here in oklahoma city do an incredible job of covering these storms. you know, he's sitting there watching it. the whole time he's thinking, i really hope that's not near my house. as soon as he makes it out on the interstate and he's driving, he sees all the overturned cars and he gets closer, he knew what had happened to him. many people sitting around and watching that. even if you're not home, you're worried about your neighbors, did your neighbors make it out, your friends. where is your family at? again, even if your home isn't destroyed, the time with the tornadoes on the ground is a nerve racking time for all the residents around here. >> gosh, again that -- i hate to say pile of rubble behind you because that was someone's home. that's sadly what it is now.

ed stay safe. we appreciate it. >> reporter: you bet. talking about the incredible images, you see the video, they bring us some of it, of these tornado outbreaks. no question, storm chasers are brave. but is the risk just too darn high? we'll talk about it next. is where it can take you. (now arriving: city hospital) which is why we're proud to help connect our students with leading employers across the nation. (next stop: financial center) let's get to work.

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just 18 minutes. what would you do? i want you to take a look at some guys who actually drive toward a killer storm to get video. >> turn the car around! let's get ready! go! wind! fast as you can! turn right, go! you okay?

yeah. [ bleep ] duck down, duck down, duck down! >> there are no words. i just can't. earlier, the guy who shot that video talked to cnn about what was going through his mind in those terrifying moments. >> to state the obvious, i guess, i was just thinking that we were a little too close. but the tornado's strengthened really rapidly and kind of took a turn right at us. i was hoping to get out in time. >> at some point did you feel your life was in danger? you do this often, don't you? >> yes, i've been doing this for quite a while. yeah, that's when the most scared i've ever been in the tornado situation for sure. >> we see that at some point the windshield breaks. what are you guys driving? >> we are just in -- we're in my car, which is a jeep. you know, we don't have any armored vehicle or anything like

that. so yeah, a piece of debris from a barn actually blows into the car and hit the windshield. >> that was storm chaser brandon sullivan. we're going to talk to a storm chaser in just a moment. first, though, the heartland taking a direct hit again. in all, 17 tornadoes reported across the midwest in this recent line of storms. chad myers has been at the center of our coverage. he's in oklahoma city now. chad, this has been a rough couple of weeks, especially for oklahoma. no doubt. that goes without saying. take us there today. >> reporter: well, today is a beautiful day. we have a north wind. it's absolutely fantastic. we put sunscreen on today. should have done that yesterday. but we were in the car chasing. the deal with yesterday, the wind was from the south, the relative humidity was 70, 80%. it was hot, storms didn't pop up

until 40:30. but don, the storms yesterday, the reason why you see so much of this chaser video go badly is because the storms popped in about 20 minutes, 20 or 30 minutes from nothing, cumulus cloud to 50,000 feet. ten miles high in about 20 to 25 minutes yesterday. and then the storms gathered strength, they rotated and they put the tornado down. today, it's kind of a cleanup day. there weren't that many tornadoes. it was nothing like moore. there was an ef-3 tornado but it was in the middle of a rural area. you see the damage where ed lavend lavenderia is. not like what we had in moore that happened a couple weeks ago. we are good for a couple days. all this could come back the last part of next week. probably an eight-day reprieve for some. a six-day reprieve for oklahoma. you know what, it's still spring. i know kids are getting out for spring break and summer

vacation. it's still spring according to mother nature. cold air is still trying to come from canada, warm air from the gulf of mexico. when that happens, bam, you get days like yesterday. >> i know -- weathermen have feelings too because i know from talking to you when we started this two weeks ago on that sunday night. you seemed a little bit down because you lived in oklahoma. maybe it's not the right word. concerned. this has to break your heart going back there and seeing this. >> reporter: don, you know, if this happened in kansas city, in st. louis, in any big town, that night my heart was broken because i knew people were dying. i knew people were in the way and people couldn't get out of the way. i knew the strength of that wedge tornado coming out of newcastle, turning right a little bit into moore. i knew people were in the way. i know people that were living

there. i know people whose houses don't exist anymore. we went to see a couple. i couldn't even find the streets that i used to visit them on. i couldn't find the old house. it was nothing. so, you know, i want to make people make better decisions. i give you information, i give them information so that they can protect their family and do the best for themselves. i can't save lives. but i can make you make better decisions by giving you the information you need and the tools you need to save your own lives or at least save your family's health. >> very well-stated. chad myers. you have been covering severe weather for years. i'd like you to join me in this next conversation, okay? let's talk to reed timmer, storm chaser. he had a harrowing experience on the road. he joins us from union city, oklahoma. reed, chad and i both going to interview you here, just talk to you. not really an interview. how are you doing? >> i'm tired. it's been a long week of storm chasing and we have the armored vehicles and i'll tell you what,

i pretty much feel like i lived in that vehicle year round. we drive about 80,000 miles a year. last week, been tough emotionally and physically. that tornado missed my house by a few miles. i knew a teacher in the path in the elementary school there and the last text i sent to her was drop south. i didn't realize it was so early that school was still in session. she texted me back and said i'm going to stay with my kids. i didn't hear from her for four or five hours. thank thankfully, i got a text back saying i survived. when a tornado goes anywhere, your heart drops. this is the dark side of storm chasing but also what we're trying to prevent through research and streaming live video. providing that ground truth underneath the storm to help in the warning process. >> chad before he asks, you talked about your armored vehicle. the car that was just about

demolished, chad, and reed, that wasn't an armored vehicle. that was just a regular suv, correct? >> yeah. that was probably a regular vehicle from what i understand. but our vehicles with armored and custom built to withstand the winds of most tornadoes. but the strongest tornadoes, for example that ef-5. we won't come close to that. this tornado early on had the suction vortices. it had miniature tornadoes that rotate around the outside like a merry-go-round and you can get strong vortices. that's why you can have one house sustain complete damage and houses next door are left more untouched. we can see the path of that south of this house through the wheat field just digging a trench right through there. that shows they can really pack a punch and that's why we built those armored vehicles. >> reed, you're looking at it.

can we see it if we pan over? i'm not there. i don't know if someone is next to you. if you pan over, can we see where you're talking about? >> might be able to, in between the two suvs. see that dark spot in the wheat. that's a track, a trench that takes a hard left turn on the south side of the tornado. as this larger tornado is making a left turn and moving up to the north, it was a large, quarter mile wide, it had one of those smaller suction vortices whip around the backside from north to south and that really packed those winds. you can see it make a hard 90-degree left turn and dissipate. those suction vortices are very short-lived and powerful and they'll dissipate because they're -- they don't last very long. but i've seen them rip holes. >> hold on, stop right there, camera person. reed, go back to that. is that your armored vehicle on the side of the road? >> that's actually our follow

vehicle. but we do have armor on it that has coating and polycarbonate windows. but that car we hang back to get the follow shot as we get close to the tornado or launching sensors. we found out that salina, the mile wide tornado, we found out one of our sensors was recovered by a local there. i just put a facebook post out. right after this, we're driving up to salina and we have a pressure data, real time pressure data and all kinds of meteorological data from inside that tornado that could be inside one of those suction vortices and could help explain more. >> i don't want to hog the conversation. we're looking at great video here. we can see the recovery and people, activity going on. as he said, it's a follow vehicle. go ahead, jump in here, chad. >> reed, i just want people to understand why you do it. i'm going to throw the question out. this is not a loaded question. this is a real, i want your honest answer.

why do you do what you do? >> well, i've loved science ever since i was 5 years old. i was in science olympiad. collected insects. still am a science nerd. when i see a tornado, i see beautiful science. but the dark side that these things leave behind is what we have to try to prevent. storm chasing is twofold. we're trying to provide the ground truth underneath the stream live via streaming video. helping people take shelter just as you're doing. at the same time, we're trying to do research and if we better understand the wind speeds, we can better build structures. even the videos, all the storm chasers out there that are showing the destruction and power that these things are capable of, that could mean the difference between someone taking a tornado warning seriously and not taking shelter at all. respecting the tornadoes. they see their power on video. that's the power of social media as well. >> chad, i was going to ask you why do you it. i think you answered that earlier when you said you want

to save lives. gentlemen, thank you. you're both very brave. >> that's exactly right, don. >> i've got to run. thank you very much. we appreciate you taking the time. stay safe out there. we'll get back to both of you and see you in the very near future for reasons that are unfortunate. let's move on now. we want to tell you that there are ways you can help the storm victims. the people affected. go to cnn.com/impact. cnn.com/impact. so there's an asteroid, it whizzed right past us. you may have missed it. good thing it missed us. it could have ended life as we know it on this planet. how big was it? that's next. she's always been able to brighten your day.

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